DEVICE FOR COUNTING OBJECTS FED AS BULK MATERIAL

• US 20120228321A1
• Filed: 11/09/2010
• Published: 09/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 11/09/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Collischan GmbH & Co. KG
• Original Assignee: Fritz Collischan GmbH & Co., KG
• Inventors: Heinz, Dieter
• Granted Patent: US 9,202,165 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 221/9
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 57/20 Applications of counting devices for controlling the feed of articles other applications B65B65/08
• CPC Class Codes: G06M 3/02 for performing an operation at a predetermined value of the count, e.g. arresting a machine G06M3/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06M 7/00 Counting of objects carried by a conveyor

Abstract

The invention relates to a device for counting objects fed as bulk material, comprising a first feeding unit for pre-counting a first fixed subset of a target quantity of objects and a second feeding unit for preferably separately feeding a second subset of the target quantity of objects, wherein the device (1, 7, 10) is designed such that the quantity of objects of the first subset is transmitted to a control apparatus (5), which controls the second feeding unit such that the second subset of objects is fed enough objects that the second subset of objects corresponds to the difference between the first subset and the target quantity of objects, and the first subset of objects is poured into the second subset of objects.

Claims

1. An apparatus for counting objects fed as bulk material, comprising:

a first feeding device for the preliminary counting of a first defined sub-quantity of a desired number of objects, and

a second feeding device for separate feeding of a second sub-quantity of the desired number of objects,

wherein the number of objects in the first sub-quantity is communicated to a control device, which controls the second feeding device such that the second sub-quantity of objects is fed as many objects as are necessary in order for the second sub-quantity of objects to correspond to the difference between the first sub-quantity and the desired number of objects, and the first sub-quantity of objects is poured into the second sub-quantity of objects.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a container into which the first sub-quantity of the desired number of objects is poured following the preliminary counting.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 2, wherein, during the feeding of the second sub-quantity of the desired number of objects, the control device controls the preliminary counting of the first sub-quantity for the next counting operation.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first feeding device and/or the second feeding device are/is designed as a vibratory conveying path, or the first feeding device and/or the second feeding device are/is driven by means of a servomotor.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein the vibratory conveying path is controlled or regulated by the control device, with reference to the objects counted, such that the speed of the objects fed is reduced as the defined sub-quantity of objects is approached.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a counting module for counting the objects, or a first counting module for counting the first sub-quantity and a second counting module for counting the second sub-quantity, wherein the counting module or modules is or are designed preferably for contactless counting of the objects.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the counting modules are designed for optical and/or electromagnetic and/or capacitive and/or acoustic sensing of the objects.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first feeding device has a shutter which is closed by the control device when the desired number for the first sub-quantity of objects is reached,

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first feeding device and the second feeding device can be regulated separately from one another.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first feeding device can feed 90 to 95% of the desired number of objects.